(For complete information about boating in the Whitsundays, refer to 100 Magic Miles of the Great Barrier Reef – The Whitsunday Islands)

Australia’s finest cruising grounds, the Whitsundays, offer scores of protected anchorages each within easy reach of the next. The area has the largest bareboat charter fleet (power and sail) in the South Pacific. For those trailing runabouts or trailer sailers, there are a number of launching ramps along the coast from Mackay in the southern Whitsundays to Bowen at the extreme northern end of the area, with several located conveniently in the heart of the area at Shute Harbour, Airlie Beach, Abel Point and Shingley Beach.

Sailing conditions

South-east trade winds fan the Queensland coast from March-April to September-October providing exhilarating sailing conditions, frequently 15-20 knots in strength. From October onwards milder easterlies and north-easterlies are more common. The islands themselves and the Great Barrier Reef to the east create a relatively protected stretch of water (European discoverer James Cook referred to the Whitsunday Passage as “one continued safe harbour”). But when the winds are piping in, the phenomenon of ‘bullets’ (sharp gusts) may be experienced in some anchorages, and good anchoring technique is essential.

Tides

The Whitsundays are subject to 3–4 metre tides which, during times of maximum flood and ebb, create currents that accelerate through the narrow passages between the islands, and when the direction of the wind and tidal currents oppose each other, Whitsunday waters can sometimes be turbulent. Yachts plan their movements to take advantage of currents and to avoid bumpy passage making. The large rise and fall of the water level needs to be considered when anchoring a yacht.

Boating facilities

The area has four marinas, with others under construction.

Hayman Island has a private marina available to those who are also staying at the resort.

Launching ramps are available at: the Mackay marina; at Victor Creek (just north-west of Seaforth, for access to the Newry Group and southern Whitsunday islands); at Laguna Whitsundays marina (access to the south-central islands); Shute Harbour (access to the central and northern islands); Airlie Beach/Abell Point (3 ramps, for access to the northern and central islands) and at Dingo Beach (access to the northern islands).

Water is generally available only at marina facilities in the Whitsundays.

Skippering a boat in the Whitsundays

Navigation is quite simple among the islands because there are so many prominent landmarks. The ability to interpret a nautical chart is really all that's required. Anchoring is the most demanding task, and someone in the crew needs to how to set an anchor properly. Good anchoring technique is the key to peaceful, worry-free nights, particularly if fresh trade winds are causing sharp gusts (locally referred to as 'bullets) to rush over island peaks and down into the anchorages. Those bringing their own boat to the Whitsundays, who may be familiar only with estuary cruising, should be sure that their anchor tackle is suitable for coral cruising, with an adequate length of chain and an anchor rope sufficiently thick to be comfortable to pull on. A lot of scope is sometimes necessary in the Whitsundays, and retrieving the anchor can be hard on the hands.

Bareboat yacht charter

Bareboat means 'You are the skipper, your friends the crew', but these boats are anything but ‘bare’, usually being very well equipped. Both power boats and sail boats with auxiliary engines are available, ranging in length from about 7 metres (containing 4 berths) up to 15 metres (10 berths). As a rule of thumb, for maximum comfort, the crew should number two fewer than the maximum number of berths on the yacht.

How to go about a bareboat charter

Bareboat charter bookings are best made directly with the charter company but in some cases may be made through a travel agent. A deposit is required at the time of booking, which is held until the completion of the charter. The balance of the charter fee is usually payable 60 days before the charter begins. Travel insurance is recommended in case it is necessary to cancel.

How much experience is necessary?

Prospective charterers need no formal qualifications. For your own peace of mind someone in the crew should have some experience handling a boat. The crew is given a briefing and checkout aboard the yacht before setting off, at which time the skipper will need to demonstrate that he or she can handle the vessel. The charter company may request that a professional skipper go along for a day or two (at the charterer’s expense) if there is doubt about the competence of the skipper and crew.

How long to charter?

Charters are measured in nights aboard the vessel. They usually begin at midday, and the first afternoon is largely taken up with briefing and being checked out aboard the yacht. The first night will therefore be spent at, or close to, the port of departure (most companies insist that yachts are anchored by 4.00 pm due to the difficulty of seeing fringing reefs when the sun is at a low angle). Charters end on the morning of the final day, so the last night out needs to be spent at an anchorage not too far from home base. So, out of a week's charter, this leaves five nights of real freedom of choice of anchorages, making a seven-night charter the practical minimum if one is to have enough time to see something of the area without imitating a road-runner.

A cruising itinerary

The central group of islands are within easy reach of the mainland and island charter bases, and these islands offer many choices of anchorages which have appeal for different reasons; for example, some offer excellent snorkelling, some offer fishing, some have good beaches for swimming, some have resorts. Beware of being too ambitious in drawing up an itinerary. Everyone always wants to see as much of the islands as possible, but just as spending only one night in each city on a world trip can prove exhausting, going to a different anchorage every night may defeat the purpose of a truly relaxing holiday. In practice it's nice to stay a few nights at some destinations to get into the relaxed rhythm of life aboard, doing only what's necessary to survive and not thinking about moving on to the next port straight away.

The central islands are the most popular, having the pick of the all-weather anchorages. The southern islands are less frequently visited and may appeal to those seeking greater solitude.

Seven of the islands have resorts, some of which welcome visitors in boats provided they register prior to on arrival and pay a mooring fee. In most cases this fee gives you the keys to the resort'. A stopover at a resort can be a pleasant break in a cruise, making a land-fall and having a night out.

Charter costs

The costs of a bareboat charter include the hire of the yacht, food, marine park fee, and perhaps a few extras, such as mooring fees when visiting an island resort. Charter companies offer a complete provisioning service which takes all the work and worry out of procuring food and planning meals. Several standards of provisioning, from 'basic' to 'gourmet', are available. Alternatively, charterers can do all the shopping and loading the food aboard themselves, which takes time out of the holiday, or they can provide a shopping list in advance and have the company buy to order (for which a service fee is charged). The cost of a bareboat holiday can become relatively inexpensive if the cost of hiring the boat is divided among a number of crew.

Crewed charters

For anyone who doesn’t want the responsibility of skippering a yacht on their own, crewed charter vessels operate in the Whitsundays. These vessels come with a licensed skipper and assistant, who run the boat and pamper their guests. Sometimes the guests wish to take over the sailing and decision making, in which case the professional skipper and assistant are usually quite willing to simply become part of the crew. For some charterers this situation offers the best of both worlds being able to skipper the boat themselves while being free of some of the restrictions (and responsibilities) under which bareboat charterers operate, such as the limited charter area (which does not include the Barrier Reef), the need to be anchored by 4.00 pm, and so on.

Another variation on the theme is hiring a bareboat and arranging to have a professional skipper as well, in which case the charterer pays the normal costs of the bareboat plus the additional fee for the skipper and his/her food.